Gatorade Player of the Year
Gatorade Player of the Year Press Release
In its 41st year celebrating the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Mandela Browman of the Miller School of Albemarle is the 2025-26 Gatorade Virginia Baseball Player of the Year. Gatorade Player of the Year is the top honor in high school sports, celebrating the nation’s best high school athletes for their excellence in sport, academics and community. The award recognizes Browman as Virginia’s best high school baseball player and he joins an elite legacy that spans professional athletes and coaches to CEOs, such as Clayton Kershaw (2005-06, Highland Park, TX), MacKenzie Gore (2016-17, Whiteville High School, NC) and Seth Hernandez (2024-25, Corona High School, CA).
The 5-foot-10, 170-pound senior centerfielder led the Devils (28-9) to the VISAA Division 1 semifinals this past season. Browman batted .495 with nine doubles, a triple and 11 homers, driving in 22 runs and scoring 56. Ranked as the nation’s No. 210 prospect in his class by Prep Baseball, he swiped 29 bases in 30 attempts. Browman also compiled an on-base percentage of .597 this spring and slugged .931 to finish with an OPS of 1.528. A two-time All-State selection, including First Team honors in 2025, he was named to the 2026 Perfect Game Preseason All-American Atlantic Region First Team.
Browman has volunteered locally coaching and instructing youth players. “What makes Mandela stand out are his instincts,” said The Miller School of Albemarle head coach Bill Wagner. “He’s able to make adjustments quickly because he’s athletic in the field and at the plate. He’s also able to play instinctively throughout the game because he isn’t onedimensional. He has enough power to keep teams honest in the field and his speed creates issues because of his ability to bunt and turn singles into doubles.”
Browman has maintained a B-plus average in the classroom. He has signed a written letter of athletic aid to play baseball at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this fall.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one state winner from each of the 50 states and Washington D.C., in 12 different sports: football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, boys and girls soccer, and boys and girls track & field. In total, 610 high school athletes are honored each year. From the pool of state winners, one national winner is selected in each of the 12 sports. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the winners in each sport.
As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant to donate to a social impact partner. To date, the Gatorade Player of the Year program has provided more than $6.4 million in grants to winners across more than 2,200 organizations.